1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates in general to the field of ballet shoes, and in particular to systems, methods and kits for hardening portions of ballet shoes.
2. Description of the Related Art
Ballet pointe shoes are designed to help a dancer achieve the illusion of weightlessness by allowing the dancer to stand and dance on the tips of her toes (i.e. en pointe). To achieve this, the shoes typically include a hardened toe box and a hard, rigid insole called the shank. When first purchased, pointe shoes are often either too hard, too soft, or simply ill fitting for a dancer. Thus, dancers have developed many methods to “break in” their new shoes to obtain the desired stiffness and fit. Through use, pointe shoes also break down to the point that they are no longer sufficiently stiff or properly shaped. Often, this occurs within only a few uses. Thus, dancers have long performed many “home brew” methods in attempts to harden or repair old pointe shoes according to their specific needs.
There remains a need for a simple, easy to use technique for stiffening and/or repairing pointe shoes that can be used by a wide variety of dancers and with a wide range of shoes.